2nd August, 2014
Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will hear Luis Suarez’s appeal against a four-month ban for biting on 8 August.
The Barcelona striker was slapped with the hefty ban for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil. An initial appeal against the 27-year old’s suspension was rejected by football governing body, FIFA.
The appeal has been filed by Suarez, Uruguay and Barcelona, the Spanish club he joined last month in a £75m transfer from Liverpool.
CAS has agreed to fast-track the case, and it is thought a verdict could be announced by the end of the week after the hearing.
Barcelona’s first match of the new La Liga season is on 24 August, but if the ban is upheld, Suarez will be out until late October.
Under the terms of the suspension, he is banned from “any football-related activity”, which means he cannot train with his club or enter the confines of any stadium, although players’ union Fifpro argues the details “lack clarity”.
Suarez is also banned from playing for Uruguay for nine matches and was fined 100,000 Swiss francs (£66,000).